"Contractors at YouTube Music in Austin Face Sudden Layoffs Amid Union Support"

Workers contracted with YouTube Music claimed they were laid off during an Austin City Council meeting, prompting a plea for support from the council. The Alphabet Workers Union alleged that Google informed the workers of the layoff just before a scheduled vote by the council on a resolution calling for bargaining in good faith. Google and the subcontractor, Cognizant, disputed the workers' account, stating that the contract had simply reached its natural expiration and that the workers were not laid off. The union maintains that the workers, based in Austin, were paid low wages and had minimal benefits, and that Google's refusal to bargain with them has been deemed unlawful by the National Labor Relations Board.